Protective article

ABSTRACT

A protective article includes a press molded body including a core of a foam material and a rigid shell of a plastic material molded over the core to thereby enclose intimately the core. The foam material is selected from expanded polystyrene, expanded polypropylene, expanded polyethylene, and ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer. The plastic material is selected from acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer, polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a protective article, more particularly to a protective article including a core of a foam material and a rigid shell molded over the core.

2. Description of the Related Art

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a conventional bicycle helmet 1 that includes a rigid shell 12 and a foam material 11 attached to an inner surface of the rigid shell 12 using an adhesive. The conventional bicycle helmet 1 is disadvantageous in that the foam material 11 tends to peel from the rigid shell 12 due to aging and deterioration of the adhesive after a period of use. In addition, the foam material 11 of the bicycle helmet 1 thus formed cannot be enclosed by the rigid shell 12, and has portions 113 that are exposed from the shell 12.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is to provide a protective article that can overcome the aforesaid drawbacks associated with the prior art.

According to this invention, there is provided a protective article that comprises: a press molded body including a core of a foam material and a rigid shell of a plastic material molded over the core to thereby enclose intimately the core.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional bicycle helmet;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the conventional bicycle helmet;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of a protective article according to this invention;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the preferred embodiment; and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view to illustrate an inner structure of the preferred embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIGS. 3 to 5 illustrate the preferred embodiment of a protective article 2 according to this invention. In this preferred embodiment, the protective article 2 is in the form of a bicycle helmet.

The protective article 2 includes a press molded body including a core 21 of a foam material and a rigid shell 22 of a plastic material molded over the core 21 to thereby enclose intimately the core 21.

Preferably, the foam material is selected from the group consisting of expanded polystyrene, expanded polypropylene, expanded polyethylene, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and expanded polyolefin.

Preferably, the plastic material is selected from the group consisting of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer, polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, and engineering plastics.

The press molded body is formed with a plurality of vent holes 20, and defines an accommodating space 201 in fluid communication with the vent holes 20. The rigid shell 22 has an inner wall 225 confining a top side of the accommodating space 201. A plurality of cushioning pads 24 are attached to the inner wall 225 of the rigid shell 22. The rigid shell 22 further has an outer wall 221 that is formed with a plurality of protrusions 222 and a decorative pattern 23 thereon for providing an attractive appearance.

Formation of the protective article 2 can be carried out by preparing the core 21 of the foam material having a predetermined shape in accordance with the intended application, placing the core 21 on a support (not shown), extruding a viscous melt of the plastic material over the core 21 using an extruder (not shown), enclosing the core 21 covered with the viscous melt in a mold (not shown) and removing the support therefrom at the same time so as to form the press molded body of the protective article 2. During press molding, the viscous melt (which has a melting temperature from 180 to 220° C. based on the plastic material used) completely fills the cavity in the mold, completely wraps around the core 21, and is subsequently cooled down to form a closed shell. In addition to the bicycle helmet, the protective article 2 can also be applied to other products, such as toys.

By molding over the core 21 with the plastic material to form the rigid shell 22 of the protective article 2 of this invention, the aforesaid drawbacks associated with the prior art can be eliminated.

While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretations and equivalent arrangements. 

1. A protective article comprising: a press molded body including a core of a foam material and a rigid shell of a plastic material molded over said core to thereby enclose intimately said core.
 2. The protective article of claim 1, wherein said foam material is selected from the group consisting of expanded polystyrene, expanded polypropylene, expanded polyethylene, and ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer.
 3. The protective article of claim 1, wherein said plastic material is selected from the group consisting of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer, polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene.
 4. A bicycle helmet comprising: a press molded body including a core of a foam material and a rigid shell of a plastic material molded over said core to thereby enclose intimately said core.
 5. The bicycle helmet of claim 4, wherein said press molded body is formed with a plurality of vent holes.
 6. The bicycle helmet of claim 4, wherein said foam material is selected from the group consisting of expanded polystyrene, expanded polypropylene, expanded polyethylene, and ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer.
 7. The bicycle helmet of claim 4, wherein said plastic material is selected from the group consisting of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer, polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene.
 8. The bicycle helmet of claim 4, wherein said press molded body defines an accommodating space, said rigid shell having an inner wall confining a top side of said accommodating space, said bicycle helmet further comprising a plurality of cushioning pads attached to said inner wall of said rigid shell. 